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     The holidays are over, but in most parts of the country, the cold weather is not! There are still plenty of reasons to enjoy Hot Cocoa Bombs. When I found these White Funfetti Chips in our local grocery store, I knew that White Chocolate Funfetti Birthday Bombs for the Winter Birthdays would be an awesome idea! 

      In ourFall Flavors Hot Cocoa Bomb Book, available in our Etsy Shop, I explain that different types of chocolate act differently when you melt them and try to put them into the molds.  I was a little unsure about how Funfetti Morsels would work, because white chocolate is usually very hard to get to cling to the mold if it is melted to too high of a temperature.  But, I was so pleasantly surprised at how well these funfetti chips worked in the molds.  There wasn't a lot of pooling in the bottom of the mold and the white chocolate, mixed with the funfetti sprinkles,  kept its shape very well.  

     I want to let you in on how the process works when we come up with new flavors and designs of Hot Cocoa Bombs.  
     First of all, I needed to decide what flavor to put inside of these Birthday Bombs.  When I tasted the chips themselves, I didn't really get a birthday cake flavor, simply white chocolate.  I thought to myself that banana flavor might go great with them.  When I asked the girls what they thought, they thought vanilla or cheesecake.  So, I made a few of each flavor.  Guess what, they all tasted good!  I used Jello Instant Pudding in various flavors to add the flavor to these Bombs. I wanted the color to be light so that other surprises could happen when the Bomb is melted into the milk. You can flavor them however you would like! Here are the 3 things that I did:

• Marshmallows with Banana Instant Pudding
• Marshmallows with Sugar Free Vanilla Instant Pudding
• Marshmallows with cake mix and White Chocolate Cheesecake Instant Pudding

     Second, I had a giant swirling colored marshmallow that  Maddy had brought over and we thought it would be great for Hot Cocoa Bombs that were decorated for birthdays or a unicorn effect.  Since it was a giant marshmallow, I had to cut it into small squares with a hot knife.  I heated the knife on my stove and cut up the marshmallow.  I tossed the sticky cut edges in yellow cake mix.  My thought was that the cake mix taste might come out a bit, but in the end the pudding taste won out, which was still delicious.  You could also use those fruit flavored multi-colored marshmallows instead.

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     Third, I had to decide how I wanted to decorate them!  I thought I would pipe on stars and make them look like a birthday cake! A star on top with a gold sprinkle would be like a candle.  WELL, that was less than successful! My family was split in the decision that I should do something different when they saw the pictures! Here is one of the original pics.  I leave you to your own thoughts. 

     So, I changed the look by adding more sprinkles.  I rolled some of the bottoms along the bottom sides, others, I just sprinkled more on the top.  Remember, these are my first prototypes of these Birthday Bombs. 

     Of course, the fun part is testing the bombs to see how they melt into the hot milk and how they taste!  All of these blue sprinkles turned the milk blue right away! I know kids will love that! Then there were some bubbles and the best part is always when the marshmallows pop up to the top! 

     We usually make our Hot Cocoa Bombs in the traditional bomb shape.  But, we have been known to make them in other shapes as well.  We have done Christmas Trees and this year Maddy made some Star Wars Ship shaped ones. (Those would be great for a Star Wars or Outer Space themed party!)  I have seen people making a lot of pretty round ones as well.  I have a one inch round mold that I used to make chocolate bells for the 12 Days of Christmas.  I decided to make smaller Hot Cocoa Bombs for the smaller kids, since our normal Bombs make a large mug of Hot Cocoa.  They came out pretty cute.  

I think that at a snowy day birthday party, these fancy snowballs would be a welcome treat.  For young children, I like to have them drop their Hot Cocoa Bomb into a hot cup of milk that has a lid.  They can stir it, or you can help them stir it and they can watch the marshmallows pop up.  Then, add some cold milk to cool the drink down and pop on the lid and add a straw!  Saves on a lot of mess and the kids love Hot Cocoa! 

     The beauty of this process is that you can create Hot Cocoa Bombs in any shape or flavor that you would like! Use milk or semi-sweet chocolate and flavor them with peppermint or peanut butter.  You can find all kinds of ideas in our books in our Etsy Shop, as well as tips to make it easier.  We also put out a new YouTube video this year that gives more tips.  
     If you have anyone with a winter-time birthday, make them some special birthday Hot Cocoa Bombs!  What a great treat! And, let us know how your Cocoa Bomb making is going.
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   Last year, I posted this as the 10+ days of Hot Cocoa Bombs.  Since then, we've come up with more flavors and ideas for Hot Cocoa Bombs and published a new e-book to teach you how to make the new flavors.  So, I thought I would update these gift giving ideas.  Many people have ordered and purchased them from me to use as simple friend gifts or teachers gifts.  They have become a tradition for many over the last few years.  You could even go to our Etsy shop and purchase one or two of our books and give it as a gift along with the mold and perhaps some marshmallows as well.  Or, just the book and a few bombs that you made yourself! As you look through this post, I hope it gets your creative juices flowing.  FOR BLACK FRIDAY AND CYBER MONDAY WE HAVE SOME GREAT SALES HAPPENING, SO DON'T MISS OUT! 

    Since we came up with the idea for Hot Cocoa Bombs©, Christmas just isn't Christmas without them.  Last year for Christmas, I gave each of my kid's families their own Hot Cocoa Bomb© kit so that they can make their own without waiting for me to give them some Cocoa Bomb deliciousness.  (You can order your own Cocoa Bomb Mold here and the Hot Cocoa Bomb Idea Book© here, as well as the new Fall Flavors Hot Cocoa Bomb Book.) The mold is currently out of stock.
   Last year, we didn't take part in a craft show where we sold Hot Cocoa Bombs and a number of people contacted me to find out why not!  I felt bad about it because so many people use Hot Cocoa Bombs as gifts to teachers and neighbors.  I did create a collection of bombs for a friend to give to her High School Choir class.  This year, we hosted a Craft Boutique on Facebook and actually sold Hot Cocoa Bombs from our shop! If you would like to do some Christmas Shopping, the boutique links are still open. so click on over there!   
     At this point of this 2020 year,  we have created more flavors that will be awesome to give as gifts.  So, I present to you The 12 Days of Hot Cocoa Bombs©! Now, All you have to do is decide which ones you would choose to fill your stockings for the 12 Days of Hot Cocoa Bomb Christmas! 

The 12 Days of Hot Cocoa Bombs©!

     On the first day of Cocoa Bomb Christmas my true love gave to me an Original Hot Cocoa Bomb under my tree! (click to the link of our original post). 

    On the the next 3 days of Cocoa Bomb Christmas, he gave me some spice! Pumpkin Pie, Cinnamon and Gingerbread really are nice! (Every year the decorations on the bombs change!)

    On the 5th day of Cocoa Bomb Christmas, I got something to help me sing! A Hot Cocoa Bomb© with a peppermint zing! 

     On the 6th day of Cocoa Bomb Christmas, I got something salty and sweet!  A salted Caramel cocoa bomb to sip, not to eat!  (Here is an opportunity to enlarge this gift with whipped cream and salted caramel syrup!) 

    On the 7th day of Cocoa Bomb Christmas, I knew he loved me like "no udder," when he gave me a bomb made with peanut butter!  

     On the 8th day of Cocoa Bomb Christmas my love put in my mug to steam, a bomb made of Cookies and Cream! (This was a new flavor last year! A  mug is an obvious gift to go with a Hot Cocoa Bomb©.)

     On the 10th Day of Cocoa Bomb Christmas, my true love passed the test when he gave be a Cherry Cordial Bomb, it's the BEST! 

    On the 11th day of Cocoa Bomb Christmas I couldn't let my true love forget the Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cocoa Bomb with a video yet! (The video shows you how to make them!) 

    On the 12th day of Hot Cocoa Bomb Christmas, I was filled with cheer when he gave me a Magical Butterscotch Bomb, or in other words, Butterbeer! 

    Here is a final bonus flavor to help you celebrate the New Year! Tuxedo Black and White!  Now, this bomb has class! 

     

• Create a new flavor of your own!  We are thinking of a chocolate orange flavor, for example.
• ​Give a bundle of stir sticks and a mug with your bombs.  I like to make the chocolate owls on sticks with leftover chocolate from the bombs.  Or you could make chocolate spoons. 
• How about some coasters to set their mugs on?  Or even an electric coaster to keep the cocoa warm! 

    Now, all you have to do is wrap them up (or not, but I do and I use these bags), create your own label and present them in a box, or on a tray (another gift!) or on a pear tree! Oh!  I just thought of that!  They could hang like little ornaments! 

  I would love to see pictures and ideas of your Hot Cocoa Bombs© and how you decorate and present them! Trust me, they are going to be a gift that people will want year after year! 
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    Don't forget that you can print these sweet gift tags and how to prepare a bomb directions from our printable page.  Just click the button! 

If you're looking for some great Black Friday deals we've got you covered!

In our Etsy shop November 27-Dec 1 we'll be having a 15% off sale on EVERYTHING in our shop! We make and sell items you can print at home, including recipe books, home decor, coloring posters, and more. They make great gifts for loved ones, or yourself.

Below I'll give you a preview of our most popular items.

The best sellers in our shop are by far our Hot Cocoa Bomb books and with good reason. It seems like everyone is talking about Hot Cocoa Bombs lately and we have perfected them. We happily share how to make them in our two books: How To Make Hot Cocoa Bombs and Hot Cocoa Bombs: Fall Favorites. 
We're often asked about the difference between the two books. The original booklet is just the basic recipe and some decorating and flavor ideas. The Fall Favorites book has 8 recipes for different flavors, and tips for working with chocolate.

Our coloring Christmas countdown calendar is just the thing to help you get through Christmas social distancing style. Everyday there's a different activity for you to do with your family and you can color in the ornament everyday that corresponds to the activity. Learn more about it here!
We also have a coloring poster for grandparents to give to their grandchildren. It's full of activities for grandparents and grandchildren to do together. This would be perfect to give as a promise of post-Covid quality time together. Experience gifts are the gifts that get remembered forever! (And if a poster isn't your style, it comes in book form too!) Learn more about it here!

Last but not least we have our Hot Cocoa Bombs! We decided to sell our leftover bombs or bombs that didn't exactly meet our standards for 50% off!!! That means the bombs will be $1.50!!! Our Hot Cocoa Bombs are perfect for stockings for a delicious drink on Christmas Morning. 

So be sure to check out our Etsy shop Nov 27-Dec 1 to get these and more on an awesome deal for Black Friday Weekend!

2020 has definitely been a rough year for everyone, and those of us with a small business are definitely no exception. The holidays of the past have often been the busiest time of the year for many of us, in large part due to holiday craft shows. 

Many of those shows just won't be happening this year.

So we thought, why not host a virtual one? We can all hang out online for three days, have some giveaways, interact with and support cool small business owners, and get our holiday shopping done!

So... we are!

We will be hosting the 3 Winks Holly & Mistletoe Boutique this November 19-21, and we have teamed up with so many incredible vendors from a wide variety of businesses and shops. There's really something for everyone!

If you're interested in joining, be sure to join the Facebook group and turn on notifications so you don't miss anything. 

Here's a list of our vendors!

Livvy Lou's Bow Shoppe
Polished and Purdy with Andrea
Jaci Hibshman with doTerra Essential Oils
Last Yesterday
Solo Wood Design
Lori's Card Creations
Bibs4Littles
Tara Fritz with Rodan and Fields
Sew Unique
Wreaths by Shalonda Alexander
Residual Resin
Craftastico
Color Me Culturally Confident
Sweet Louize
Zuckerman's Creations
Tara Fritz Art
Children's Culinary Institute
Baked in America

Plus one more surprise...

Typically, we only sell our hot cocoa bombs locally at craft fairs. This year, the Original Hot Cocoa Bomb will be available in our Etsy shop for the 3 days of the craft fair. Our available flavors will be:
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Original
Cinnamon
Salted Caramel
Cherry Cordial
Butterscotch
Gingerbread
Peppermint
and Hazelnut

These will be sold in packs of 4-12. Stop by early to make sure you get the flavors you want!

So who's excited? We definitely are! Will we see you there? Let us know in the comments!